BABE RUTH: Nottingham 15s survive with runs in seventh

HAMILTON — If opening night of the District One Babe Ruth 15-year old tournament is typical of what’s in store the rest of the week, then plan on stopping by DeMeo Field in Veterans Park for plenty of excitement.

Host Nottingham provided plenty of its own Sunday night when it battled back from an early four-run deficit to get past West Windsor-Plainsboro, 7-6, when the winning run scored in the bottom of the seventh on a dropped fly ball in the outfield.

Nottingham’s win advances it to play defending champ Mercer East, which got by Trenton earlier in the night, 7-2.

The week-long tournament continues tonight when Hamilton makes its debut at 5:30 p.m. taking on Ewing-Hopewell in a second round game at 5:30 p.m. It will be broadcast on WRRC ‘The Bronc’ (107.7 FM).

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West Winsor will follow at 8 p.m. in an elimination bracket game against Trenton.

Nottingham’s tension-packed opening win was decided with two unearned runs in the seventh, with the game-winner coming across when Matt Ricci’s two-out fly ball to right was dropped.

It let Tom Persicheti race home from third to save the host team in front of a big crowd.

Ironically the ball that Ricci hit helped erase a throwing error he was guilty of in the top of the seventh. He had come in to relief Ahmed Tahoun with Ryan Phelan at third after he had doubled and advanced on a single by Tom Pecora that fell in short center.

Ricci’s first toss was a wild pitch to score Phelan, and after Pecora stole third he came home when a bouncer in front of the mound was throw over first into right by Ricci, who then proceeded to get his third strikeout to send Nottingham into the bottom of the seventh trailing by one.

After Russell Kuriczan doubled off Pecora, who had come on in relief, Pecora tried to pick him off but his throw went into center. A wild pitch plated Kuriczan to tie it and Tom Persichetti followed with a single and quickly stole second. He would score on the dropped fly ball.

“On that error I made I was in front of the catcher and probably wouldn’t have gotten the runner,” said Ricci later. “I struck out at the plate today, but my teammates picked me up. “That’s the way this team is, they always pick someone up. When someone has a bad day we always pick him up. I knew they (WW-P) were going to be very tough because they’re good,” said Ricci.

WW-P opened the game with three straight hits, scoring on a Jeremy Lockwood sac fly and a Steve Schilder single. Lockwood and Schilder added RBI singles in the third before Nottingham, outhit 7-1 at the time, came back as Ricci’s groundout and basehits by Dave Stec and Mark Barry drove in runs.

Andrew Moticha and Dylan Bagley plated runs in the fifth to set the stage for the wild finish.

Trenton, despite turning three doubleplays, couldn’t overcome four early Mercer East runs when Griffin Lepore singled home two, and an error and wild pitch plated two more.

Jose Rodriguez and Chris Fuentes drove in Trenton runs off winning pitcher Connor Lugo, but couldn’t come all the way back despite playing one of its better games in years.